Means for mounting and driving centrifugal machines.



Patented July 10, 191?.

4 ii ii ZN/06703024)? W. 6 u Mw/MM M. H. BARKER & C. A. ADAMS. A. M. BARKER, ADMINISTRATOR OF M. H. BARKER, os'c'n. MEANS FOR MOUNTING AND DRIVING CENTRIFUGAL MACHINES. APPLICATION FILED APR.22. 1910. LQ3%.'?5.

4 W IIIIIII UNTEE STATES PATENT EETEE.

MELVILLE H. BARKER, OF BOSTON, AND COMFORT A. ADAMS, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSA- CHUSETTS; ANNIE M. BARKER, ADMINISTRATBIX OF SAID MELVILLE H. BARKER, DECEASED; SAID ADAMS AND ADMINISTRATRIX ASSIG-NORS TO AMERICAN TOOL & MACHINE COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSA- CHUSETTS.

MEANS FOR MOUNTING AND DRIVING CENTRIFUGAL MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July it 1917.

Application filed April 22, 1910 Serial No. 556,980.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, MELVILLE H. BARKER and COMFORT A. Aoaris, citizens of the United States and residents, respectively, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, and of Cambridge, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Mounting and Driving Centrifugal Machines, of which the following is a. specification.

This invention relates to centrifugal machines of the overhead suspension type and is intended to provide a simple, convenient and efficient construction and arrangement for mounting such machines and also for driving such machines by a direct coupled motor.

Heretofore it has been proposed to drive this type of machine by an electric or other motor which is connected directly to the oscillatory basket shaft by means of a flexible coupling, the motor shaft being mounted in stationary hearings to prevent oscillation. One difiiculty developed in connection with such an arrangement however, is found in the tendency of the coupling to transmit lateral pressure to the lower end of the motor shaft as the basket shaft oscillates or gyrates, thereby lessening the life of the lateral bearing of the motor shaft and cansing the same to heat. One feature of the present invention consists in the combination of the non-oscillatory motor shaft with the gyratory basket shaft and flexible coupling means for transmitting the drive from the motor shaft to the basket shaft by means of a positive connection which is free from backlash or pull, while at the same time no lateral strain is transmitted from one coupling member to the other. Other novel features of construction and arrangement will be particularly described in the following specification and defined in the claims forming part thereof.

In the drawings- Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in central section of a machine constructed accord ing to the principles of our invention.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section through the flexible coupling; and

Fig. is a horizontal section through the basket shaft and its oscillatory sleeve just below the coupling members.

In the practice of our invention according to the form illustrated in the drawings, a fixed hanger (a is securely bolted to the sustaining I-beams a and is provided with a socket portion a constructed to receive an oscillatory sleeve 6 which is formed with a spherical bearing surface at its middle portion adapted to be seated in the socket to permit the oscillation of said sleeve. The upper portion of the sleeve is formed with a larger bore than the lower portion so as to leave a shoulder adapted to sustain an antifriction bearing 5 which rotatably supports the basket shaft 0. Above said bearing the basket shaft is provided with a collar 0, the upper end of the shaft being screwthreaded to receive a retaining nut c which bears upon the supporting collar (2', the collar forming an intermediate member for receiving the thrust of the bearing and sustaining the basket shaft. The lower portion of the bore of the sleeve 6 forms a lateral bearing for the inclosed portion of the basket shaft.

The basket shaft is preferably divided horizontally into upper and lower sections 0 and 0 for a purpose hereinafter to be described, the adjacent ends of said sections being formed with notched heads or flanges innnediately adjacent to the lower end of the sleeve, said flanges being rigidly but detachably fastened together by means of fastening bolts or the like. The flange formed at the lower end of the upper member is provided with a screw-threaded arm 0 to which is detachably secured the oil cup 0* which has a tight screw-threaded engagement therewith. The rotary bearing is located in the plane of the center of oscillation and the oil cup is extended upward outside of the socket piece or member a of the hanger so that the oil may be always maintained at a level to immerse the rotary bearing. The upper end of the sleeve 5 and the corresponding portion of the hanger are so formed as to leave an annular recess between the sleeve and the hanger to receive a buffer (Z of rubber or other suitable material which serves to afford a yielding resistance to the oscillation of the bearing sleeve as the basket gyrates. As the rubber commonly used for this buffer tends to deteriorate, harden and to adhere firmly to the adjacent parts so that it is necessary in such case to dig it out piecemeal in order to remove it, we have provided a removable lining for said annular space which serves to prevent contact between the buffer and the adjacent metallic parts so that the buffer and the lining may be removed together, thus obviating the above mentioned diffieulty.

This lining may be made in any suitable form but in the drawings is shown as consisting of two concentric rings or bands '(Z (P, the one outside and the other inside of the buffer, one of said rings or bands being made with a horizontal bottom portion (Z to protect the bottom of the rubber from contact, space being left between the adjacent edges of the bottom and the other member to allow sufficient movement of the one mei'nber relative to the other in order to permit the compression of the buffer in all. directions.

The sleeve 7) is held against rotation by means of a locking ring 0 which on its inside engages a recess formed in the sleeve as shown at e and which has outwardly projecting wings or lugs a" resting loosely in notches u; formed in the top of the hanger a. This ring permits the oscillation of the sleeve while preventing its rotation and is removable by simply lifting it from its seat. It is held in place by a retaining nut e which has screw-threaded engagement with the upper end of the bearing sleeve, said nut being adapted to be screwed tightly down upon the locking ring so as to compress the lnrlier firmly between the two members which it separates. The extreme top end of the basket shaft- (1 is reduced in diameter and to it is rigidly and detachably secured the basket shaft member of the flexible coupling.

The motor 9 is mounted on the I-beams above the centrifugal machine with its shaft y in axial alinement with the basket shaft and has at its upper part the thrust bearing and at its lower 'pa'rt the lateral bearing 9" which steadies the motor shaft and keeps it permanently in position. To the lower end 'f the motor shaft is detachably secured the motor member of the coupling.

As shown in the drawings the upper coupling lllGlIllJOl is larger than the basket shaft member and is formed with a vertical annular flange g surrounding and concentric with 'a similar but smaller flange formed on the lower member. These flanges or annular rims are formed with vertical slots or interstices arranged as shown in Fig. 2 so as to allow the flexible connection, which eonsists of a belt 72., to be interwoven or interlaced between the two members in such a way that each bight of the belt extends inside of the outer coupling member in a direction approximately parallel to its circumference and extending rearwardly in relation to the direction of rotation so as to exert at all times a constant forward pull upon the portion of the inner coupling member which it passes around. Obviously this arrangement permits the inner member to oscillate with entire freedom with respect to the outer member without causing any late al stress or strain upon said outer member which would be transmitted to the lower bearing of the motor shaft.

In order to prevent backlash or lost motion, rotatably speaking, asimilar belt h is interlaced between the two members but in such a way that the connecting bights thereof instead of extending rearwardly around the inside of the outer member, extend in a forward direction so that its tension or pull is in the reverse direction'of that exerted by the driving belt member h. When both belts are tight, it is obvious that there :an be no substantial backlash or lost motion and the belts can at all times be kept tight by taking up the belt lacing or other belt fastener as in the ease of any belt.

It will be noticed from a consideration of the foregoing description that the pull of the driving member upon the driven member is always substantially in the dircctionof the rotation; that the connection is at all times absolutely positive, avoiding backlash or lost motion; and that .while the free oscillation of the basket shaft is not interfered with .by the coupling, at the same time no lateral strain can be transmitted through the coupling to the lower bearing of the motor shaft. Y

ln thedireetconnected motor-driven centrifugal machines of this type much difi i culty and loss of time is encountered when, for the purpose of replacement or repairs it is necessary to dismount the basket-shaft owing to the fact that the basket at the lower end of the shaft is sin-rounded by a curb or casing while th eupper end of the shaft projects up through the fixed supporting hanger.

lVe have found a simple and convenient.

way of obviating this trouble by constructing a basket-shaft in two separable sections which are rigidly jointedtogether ust below the lower end of the supporting hanger. The upper section 0 and the lower section 0 are each provided with an enlarged head boredto receive vertical coupling bolts. The head, or flange, of section 0 is also constructed to form. a support for the-external oil cup o as shown.

By reason of the construction and ar- 'angement shown it is possible to quickly detach the lower section of the basket shaft from the upper section and then by loosening the upper coupling member and the thrust nut c to drop the upper section of the shaft down through the sleeve and remove it entirely Without disturbing the motor or removing it from its support. Thereafter if desired the coupling member itself can be removed so as to afiord access to the buffer or to the thrust bearing, the oil cup, of course, being removable together with the upper shaft section to which it is attached.

hat we claim..is:

1. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a rotary gyratory basket-shaft and oscillatory bearing, sleeve in which said shaft is suspended for support and rotation, a. non-oscillatory motor-driven shaft arranged axially above said basket-shaft, flexible connecting means forming a driving coupling between the adjacent ends of the two shafts, said connecting means being unyielding in a circumferential direction while yielding freely for a slight distance in a radial direction, whereby the torque of the motor shaft may be transmitted to the gymtory basket-shaft Without lateral strain 011 the motor-shaft, substantially as described.

2. In a centrifugal machine the combina tion of the oscillatory sleeve, a thrust hearing located therein in the plane of its center of oscillation, a basket shaft suspended from said thrust bearing and having lateral hearing support in the lower portion of said sleeve, said shaft being divided transversely into upper and lower sections provided at their adjacent ends with opposed coupling flanges, means for detachably connecting said flanges together, an oil cup supported by the flange of the upper section by a detachable connection to extend upward outside of said sleeve beyond the plane of said thrust bearing, substantially as described.

In a centrifugal machine the combination of the socketed hanger, an oscillatory bearing sleeve, a basket shaft rotatably suspended inside said sleeve, an annular yielding buffer interposed between the outside of the sleeve and the opposite portion of the hanger, a removable locking member surrounding the sleeve and having engage ment with the hanger to permit the sleeve to oscillate while preventing its rotation,

and means for securing said locking memberin position, substantially as described.

4i. In a centrifugal machine the combination of the socketed hanger, the oscillatory sleeve seated therein, a basket shaft rotatably supported in said sleeve, an annular buffer interposed between said sleeve and the surrounding portion of the socketed hanger, a locking member surrounding the upper end of said sleeve and resting upon said buffer, and a fastening ring for compressing said locking member upon said buffer, substantially as described.

5. In a centrifugal machine the combination of the centrally bored oscillatory beariug head provided with an internal thrust bearing, a solid basket shaft, a detachable close fitting sleeve secured to said basket shaft near its upper end, a retaining nut having screw-threaded engagement with the basket shaft arranged above and in contact with said sleeve to bear against the same, a detachable coupling member detachably secured to said shaft above said nut, a non oscillatory driving shaft rotatably mounted above said basket shaft and in vertical alinement therewith, a coupling member detachably secured to the lower end of said driving shaft and having flexible engagement with the coupling member secured to the basket shaft, substantially as described.

(3. In a centrifugal machine the combination with an overhead support of a gyratory rotatable basket shaft suspended from said support, a driving motor whose shaft is in vertical alinement with said basket shaft, cooperating coupling members secured to the adjacent ends of the respective shafts and comprising concentric flanges extending axially of the shaft, flexible connecting means extending from one flange to the other in approximately a circumferential direction said connecting means being free to move toward and away from the center while preserving a taut connection between said flanges, substantially as described.

In witness whereof, we have subscribed the above specification.

MELVILLE H. BARKER. COMFORT A. ADAMS. In the presence of Geo. N. GODDARD, KATHARINE A. DUGAN.

Copies of this patent may he obtained for five cents each, by addressing; the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

